Prenatal diagnosis of 5p deletion syndrome following abnormally low maternal serum human chorionic gonadotrophin

Prenatal diagnosis of 5p deletion syndrome, or cri du chat, following an abnormally low measurement of a screening of serum human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG), is reported. Karyotyping following amniocentesis revealed a terminal deletion in the short arm of one chromosome 5. The pregnancy was electively terminated. 5p deletion syndrome has been described with abnormally high hCG levels and normal hCG levels. This is the first report of its association with abnormally low levels. The association between chromosomal abnormalities and hCG is discussed. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Morphological and cytogenetic analysis of intact oocytes and blocked zygotes

We examined cytological and cytogenetic parameters of 1076 oocytes and 385 zygotes that failed to develop post in vitro fertilization (IVF) and intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI). Out of 1076 oocytes, 894 (83%) arrested oocytes showed a first polar body and were thus assumed arrested at metaphase II while the remainder showed no polar body. In the group of oocytes with a polar body, 20.5% had an abnormal karyotype. Cytologically, premature sperm chromosome condensation was noted in 28.3% of uncleaved oocytes. This high PCC can be explained by the different grades of oocyte maturity from one center to another. Oocytes from older women showed no increased aneuploidy but did show increased premature chromosome condensation. Analysis by classical technique of 220 uncleaved zygotes showed 91 with highly condensed chromosomes, 53 with asynchrony of condensation, 31 with pulverized chromosomes, and 45 arrested at the first somatic metaphase. Out of 385 arrested zygotes, 165 were explored by in situ hybridization. FISH using a set of 7 chromosome-specific probes showed aneuploidy in the chromosomes analyzed (13, 16, 18, 21, 22, X, Y) in 21.8% of blocked zygotes (19–25% depending on morphology). Extrapolating to other chromosomes, we expect that a vast majority of blocked zygotes and oocytes probably carry chromosome abnormalities. These data demonstrate the contributions of chromosome disorder in early embryo development blocking and implantation failure. Certainly, the issue of cytoplasm and nuclear immaturity and their relation to each other and to chromosome abnormalities provides a fertile area for future investigation in ART. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Persistence and mobility of 2,4-D in unsaturated soil zone under winter wheat crop in sub-tropical region of India

The present study was undertaken to determine the persistence and mobility of 2,4-dichlorophenoxy acetic acid (2,4-D) in unsaturated soil zone under real field conditions for the wheat crop in Roorkee, India. Three experimental plots were chosen in the agricultural field itself to represent the real field conditions in the study area and the potential movement and persistence of herbicide 2,4-D was investigated under three different irrigation treatments. The presence of herbicide along with soil water content was determined in soil at different depths at a temporal scale. The movement of the herbicide was also simulated numerically by solving the coupled soil water content movement and mass transport equations using HYDRUS-1D. The measured soil water content trends and the 2,4-D concentration profiles showed a good agreement with the numerically simulated results. The maximum effect of the herbicide was primarily retained up to 15 cm of the soil profile. The current existing dosage of 0.5 kg ha⁻¹ of pesticide was found to be safe to avoid soil contamination as no residue of 2,4-D was traced at the end of the wheat crop season in any of the plots. Higher concentrations of 2,4-D were also simulated numerically and the simulated results showed that the safe dosage of pesticide application would depend on irrigation treatments.     

基于半经验模型对大面积染料敏化太阳电池性能影响因素的研究

以影响大面积染料敏化太阳电池性能的几个物理参量和几何参量为切入点,分析了内部电阻对电池性能的影响,针对几种构型不同的大面积电池,建立了效率的半经验模型.根据并联、串联、和各单元独立式串并联的大面积电池的相关物理参量和几何参量,对电池效率进行了计算.通过比较计算值与测试值的偏差,分析了半经验模型的适用性.在半经验模型的基础上,分析了相关物理参量和几何参量对电池性能的影响.结果表明,在实际应用中,通过半经验模型分析物理参量和几何参量的影响,可以优化大面积电池的性能.     

基于Kriging插值的路旁土壤重金属含量空间分布 ——以310国道郑州-开封段为例

分别在G310国道郑州-开封段的杏花营路段两侧150m×150m范围内布设7条垂直于公路的采样子断面,从路肩向两侧每隔10m采集1个表土混合样,共采集226个样品（包括2个对照样品）.用ICP-MS测定了土壤重金属（Pb、Cu、Zn、Cd、Cr和Ni）含量,并用Universal Kriging插值法分析路旁土壤重金属空间分布特征.结果表明,路旁土壤重金属呈与道路平行的带状分布,表明6种重金属含量均受公路交通影响,属于公路源重金属.土壤Cr和Cu含量在路基处含量最高,向两侧逐渐下降,呈指数分布;土壤Pb、Zn、Cd和Ni含量在距路基30～50m处出现峰值,呈偏态分布.路旁土壤Pb、Cu、Zn、Cd、Cr和Ni均为交通源重金属.     

异位稳定化技术处理重金属复合污染土壤的工程应用研究

异位稳定化技术处理重金属污染土壤在国内外已有应用,但鲜有大规模工程应用时的控制关键及操作要求的报道。本研究根据异位稳定化处理技术的特点,采用该技术处理重金属复合污染且修复时间有限的目标污染场地,通过合理控制稳定剂投加量、土壤理化性质、施工工艺及养护条件等各项影响因素,取得了很好的处理效果,可为类似污染场地提供借鉴和经验。     

某涡轮风扇发动机试车台的声环境研究

涡轮风扇发动机试车台空气流量大,试车噪声呈宽带强噪声,其中突出的低频域噪声可远距离传播,易造成大范围的环境污染。为掌握某型涡轮风扇发动机在室内试车时的噪声特性,并检验试车台建筑物和各项降噪设备的效果,我们对新建试车台的声环境进行了测量。通过对该试车台内、外环境噪声数据的分析,表明新建试车台的声环境满足了我国有关规范的要求。本次研究工作对今后试车台的声学设计具有重要的借鉴意义。